fast (verb)

The Aramaic, Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated as “fast” in English is translated in Isthmus Mixe as “going without food to worship God,” in Lacandon as “leaving eating in order to talk to God” (source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.), in Vidunda as “resting to eat” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext), and in Kankanaey as “endure hunger” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation).

See also fast (Luke 5:33).

give a tenth of all my income

The Greek that is translated as “give a tenth of all my income” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) with zehn Prozent Einkommenssteuer an den Tempel or “ten percent income tax paid to the temple.”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (image)

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector is illustrated for use in Bible translations in West Africa by Wycliffe Cameroon like this:

Illustration 1999 Mbaji Bawe Ernest, © Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. Used with permission.

complete verse (Luke 18:12)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 18:12:

  • Noongar: “Every week, I do not eat for one day, and I give you the right share of all my money.'” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “I, I fast two times in one week. And one-tenth from all my received-things/income I give to you (sing.), Lord.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “Every week I fast twice and I give the tenth of all my income.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “I refrain from eating twice in the week, and I give to you a tenth of all my wealth!’ he said.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Because as for me, twice weekly I fast (lit. endure my hunger) and I also am giving you (sing.) the tenth of all my salary.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “For as for me, twice a week I fast and I give the tenth part of all my income.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Luke 18:12

Exegesis:

nēsteuō dis tou sabbatou ‘I fast twice a week.’ The present tense suggests habit. For nēsteuō cf. on 5.33. Fasting twice a week was more than the law required.

apodekatō panta hosa ktōmai ‘I pay tithes on all I get,’ i.e. on all my income. This was also more than the law required. apodekatoō (GOOD NEWS BIBLE) or apodekateuō (Nestle) ‘to tithe,’ ‘to give one tenth (of income, or profits) to God’; cf. also on 11.42.

ktaomai (also 21.19) ‘to procure for oneself,’ ‘to acquire.’

Translation:

Fast, see references on 2.37.

A week, or, ‘every week,’ ‘every seven days,’ or, following another calculation, ‘every eight days’ (Javanese).

I give tithes of … see on 11.42. Some descriptive renderings used here are, ‘I divide … in ten (parts) and bring one part to the Temple (Tae’ 1933), or, give-in-charity one-part-of-it’ (Toraja-Sa’dan).

Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.

SIL Translator’s Notes on Luke 18:12

18:12a

In this verse the Pharisee continued to list things about his own character and actions for which he thanked God. Here he mentioned good things that he did. These things contrast with the sins that he did not do, which are mentioned in 18:11. In some languages it may be necessary to introduce this contrast in some way. For example:

On the contrary
-or-
Instead

Jesus stopped quoting the Pharisee’s prayer at the end of this verse. See the General Comment on 18:12b for a translation suggestion.

I fast twice a week: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as fast means “to choose not to eat or drink for a certain time.” The Pharisees fasted for religious reasons. The phrase I fast twice a week indicates that on two days of the week, the Pharisee did not eat or drink anything. These “days” were two different periods of twenty-four hours, from one sunset to the next sunset.

The Old Testament laws required a Jew to fast only one day in the year, on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:29). The Pharisee implied that he fasted much more than the law required. Some ways to translate I fast twice a week are:

For two days each week I do not eat or drink
-or-
I abstain from food for two days a week ⌊to pray⌋

The word fast also occurred in 5:33. See how you translated it there.

18:12b

and pay tithes of all that I acquire: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as pay tithes of all that I acquire can also be translated as “give a tenth” (as in the New International Version). The Old Testament laws required Jews to give to God a tenth of what they gained from their cultivated fields (Deuteronomy 14:22).

As in 18:12a, the Pharisee implied that he did more than the law required him to do. He gave to God a tenth of everything he received. To give a tenth to God is to take one thing/part out of every ten things/parts and give it to God. Another way to translate this is:

I divide all I receive into ten parts and give one part to you.

This practice was also mentioned in 11:42. See how you translated it there.

General Comment on 18:12b

At the end of this verse Jesus stopped quoting what the Pharisee said in his prayer. In some languages it may be necessary to indicate in some way that the prayer has ended. For example:

“…and give a tenth of all I get.” ⌊That is what the Pharisee prayed.⌋

© 2009, 2010, 2013 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.